Taking strong exception to an alleged derogatory article about her on the Sri Lankan defence website, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Friday accused it of trying to create fissures in India's federal polity as she demanded an unconditional apology from Colombo for the insinuations against her.
'Expunging remarks is within the powers of the Speaker.' 'Nobody can question or challenge the Speaker's decision.'
India, the official said, has a long history of relations with Russia. They have interests with Russia that go back many, many decades.
The Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also observed silence for two minutes in the memory of Mukherjee.
The legislative amendment was passed on Thursday by voice vote as part of an en bloc (all together as a single unit) amendment during floor consideration of the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA).
National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon arrived in Colombo on Monday to hold crucial talks on the controversial 13th amendment on devolution of power in the Tamil-dominated northern province and a trilateral maritime security treaty with Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese will hold extensive talks on Friday with a focus on boosting overall bilateral ties in areas of trade and investment, defence and critical minerals.
There are apprehensions about the possibility of the vessel's tracking systems attempting to snoop on Indian installations while being on its way to the Sri Lankan port.
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defence Minister Peter Dutton from the Australian side will meet with External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
He said that Canada recognises the impact that some of these measures may have and at the same time it's another reason why he placed such emphasis on the investigation that's taking place that they are able to move beyond credible intelligence to evidence, strong evidence of exactly what happened.
Swedish Prime Minister Lofven lauded India as 'global power' and said the two countries are a 'perfect match'.
Foreign policy is always a work in progress and ups and downs are built into foreign policy process. What is permanent is national interest. Hopefully, this year, which will also witness general elections in the country, will also clear clouds in the foreign policy horizon, observes Rup Narayan Das.
The government on Thursday said the passport application of hardline Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Geelani cannot be processed in its present form, noting that it was incomplete.
Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang will travel to India to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) foreign ministers' meeting being held in Goa on May 4 and 5, the foreign ministry in Beijing announced on Tuesday.
The talks took place in a beach resort in Benaulim on the sidelines of a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
The Z+ security cover of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel has been extended to Khan and Raj Bhavan, his office said in a post on 'X'.
India and Saudi Arabia on Monday called on states to reject the use of terrorism against other countries and prevent access to weapons, including missiles and drones, to commit acts of terror.
After India firmly told China that its violation of the border pacts has "eroded" the entire basis of bilateral ties, China's defence ministry on Friday said the situation at the border is "generally stable" and both sides should put the boundary issue in an "appropriate position" and promote its transition to "normalised management".
During the monsoon session, which began on Monday, the Opposition is seeking to corner the government on its handling of the standoff with China along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, the COVID-19 situation, economic downturn and unemployment, and is pressing for discussions on these issues.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday called on Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Islamabad and discussed connectivity, terror threats to the war-torn country and the peace and reconciliation process there.
The four astronauts are -- Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, Angad Prathap, Ajit Krishnan, and Shubhanshu Shukla -- Modi said at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) at Thumba near the Kerala state capital.
Facing the threat of cancellation of its Rs 3600-crore deal for VVIP choppers, AgustaWestland has asked the government to release its payments saying withholding it was a 'breach of contract'.
Besides attending the SCO defence ministers' meeting, Singh will hold talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoigu and several other top military officials with an aim to expedite the implementation of several defence procurement programmes, they said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the US is expected to see discussion on India's possible entry into a US-led global alliance on critical minerals, officials told Business Standard. In June last year, the US, the European Union, and other G7 partners launched the Minerals Security Partnership to ensure that China did not further strengthen its grip on supplies of critical minerals the world over. Various ministries, including the Ministry of Finance, have communicated to the Ministry of External Affairs to explore the possibility of India joining the partnership, officials said.
The MEA said there has not been any change in India's position on the LAC and the mutual redeployment as a result of the disengagement process should not be misrepresented.
The disengagement of troops of the Indian Army and China's People's Liberation Army from the Line of Actual Control was reached after sustained negotiations at the military and diplomatic level, said the ministry of external affairs last week.
If the meeting takes place, then it will be the first one between the two leaders after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year.
A year after their abduction by Somalian pirates, 28 Indian sailors on board two ships have been released and will sail for home, bringing huge relief to their families.
According to the policy, each organisation under the MoD such as tri-services, Integrated Defence Staff, Assam Rifles and Indian Coast Guard, will transfer the records, including war diaries, letters of proceedings and operational record books, to the History Division of MoD for proper upkeep, archival and writing of histories.
Over 1,300 people signed the open letter within 48 hours, which was submitted to the Prime Minister's Office on Monday.
The external affairs ministry's files, as distinct from those of the ministry of defence or the agencies, at least from before 1974 should be declassified. And if select files that are more than 40 years old are not to be declassified, the ministry should follow explicit guidelines to justify taking such a view, says Jaimini Bhagwat.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Wednesday China has given India 'five differing explanations' for deploying large forces at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), adding this violation of bilateral pacts has 'very significantly damaged' their relationship that is now at its 'most difficult phase' in the last 30-40 years.
The defence minister said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar was present at the Trump-Modi meeting held on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Osaka and his statement is the "most authentic" on the issue.
Vouching for preserving its independence and sovereignty, Muizzu made a firm commitment to ensure that the Maldives remains "free of any foreign military presence."
We ask you to rate the pradhan sevak and his ministers on four criteria: Vision. Execution. Efficiency. And their response to the public.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi assured the Secretary of State that his country is committed to the war against terrorism.
In a joint statement, the two armies said it was agreed to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and ensure that the frontline troops exercise restraint and avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation.
Union minister Smriti Irani reacted furiously to the Congress leader's barb at the prime minister over the Rafale purchase and the tense situation in Manipur.
Cooperation in key areas of defence, security and counter-terrorism will be an important aspect of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's discussions during his visit to three West Asian countries -- Palestine, the United Arab Emirates and Oman -- starting Friday.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Tuesday said that he has not expressed any reservation over the defence ministry's move to scrap the Rs 3,546 crore VVIP chopper deal, and added that his comment was a sensible one.
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